Dorobo no Kakuro
by Prospero Hibiki
Summary: Different people in familiar settings. Unexpected strengths and drives. Is anyone what they seem in this different Ohtori? What will happen when the Rose Bride changes hands? Who will fight and who will ...
1. Chapter 1

Dorobo no Kokoro  
  
A Shoujo Kakumei Utena Fanfiction  
  
By Prospero Hibiki  
  
The Grandmaster Mongoose  
  
God of Misdirection, Caffeine, and Those Socks You Lost Last Tuesday  
  
http://prospero.anifics.com  
  
hell_frost@hotmail.com  
  
Disclaimer:  
  
Were I anything but a poor college student I would ... well I don't know what would happen since I doubt that this situation will change in the foreseeable future except if I fail out of said college. As it is I'm not making any money off of these characters and any character that you don't recognize from Shoujo Kakumei Utena is mine. And the truly sad thing is I'm not even making money off of them. The characters you do recognize however belong to Saito Chiho, Ikuhara Kunihiko, Be-Papas, Viz, Animerica, Animerica Extra, Shogakukan, and/or any combination of these and others.  
  
This story takes place during the timeline of the regular Utena series but in a slightly adjusted universe. For those not familiar with the idea this is considered an Altiverse fic. With this said there will be changes in the original timeline and series content for reasons better left unexplained (it also smoothes over some gaps in my memory). So please don't flame me saying that these characters are wrong or that I've completely mangled your favorite scene from the series.  
  
***  
  
It was the beginning of a new term at Ohtori. Soneil Thane walked towards the school from his dorm building as he had every previous term. There really were no differences this year for him despite having advanced into the High School. He chose to wear the standard teal uniform despite the fact that his grandfather's efforts at getting him into the prestigious academy had entitled him to a different one. But then choosing to wear that uniform would have attracted too much attention to him. Soneil was nothing if not a private person. He hid his blue eyes behind brown contacts that he was so religious about using that no one knew of them. As it was he stood out too much with his hair being a shocking white and the thin, almost invisible scar that traveled a short vertical distance down his left cheek. Only with a great amount of difficulty could he change his hair color. And despite that he had a wide variety of dyes hidden away behind a removable panel in his single room at the dorm as well as several other locations unknown to others.  
  
Aside from his hair color there was very little to distinguish Soneil from his fellow students. He knew everyone's name in his grade but few could come up with his name off the top of their head. He could engage in conversation with anyone at a moment's notice, but if anyone thought about the conversation afterwards they would fail to find that they had learned anything other than what they'd already known. His grades were kept at an acceptable level, often coming close to perfect but never reaching it due to the occasional careless response. Not a joiner, he couldn't be classified as a loner for he could converse on any school activity as if he had participated himself.  
  
All of these things would have greatly interested anyone who cared to discover the information, but because Soneil took great pains to make sure no one became so curious, no one knew this. The patriarch of the Thane family had been desperate when he'd sent his grandson to Ohtori Academy. It had been his hope that the structured experience that the school offered would force Soneil to abandon the things taught to him by his uncle. And to his knowledge the school had succeeded admirably. He would have been most dismayed if he'd known that instead of abandoning his uncle's teachings Soneil had instead perfected them beyond anything his uncle could have done.  
  
Soneil was an average student because and only because he wished to be perceived as one. Attracting attention in one field of interest could lead to attracting attention in others, and that was simply something that Soneil could not allow. Which wasn't to say that he wasn't irked by the need to maintain a low profile. For one thing it made if fairly difficult to appeal to members of the opposite sex.  
  
Sighing once more at the great ironies of the world he continued on his way to his homeroom to begin another hopefully dull term.  
  
***  
  
It was with some dismay that he learned that he would be in the same homeroom as Juri Arisugawa for the year's remaining term. It was a change and a bad one because he hadn't known about it ahead of time. He had no time to prepare for it before he'd been hustled by the teacher to his new room. There had apparently been a small overflow in his old homeroom because of some new students. For once his tactic for choosing his academic level had backfired. He'd done well enough that the faculty assumed the transfer wouldn't disrupt his studies, and poorly enough that he wasn't classified as a prize pupil that a teacher would keep around for bragging rights. So there he was standing in front of the classroom full of people, the sole center of attention. Needless to say he absolutely hated it.  
  
There were no good things about the move, only less horrible things. One of these was the fact that everyone was at least familiar with the fact that he was in their grade and so paid very little attention to him. But then that little attention was almost too much as he could see one or two girls get a little starry eyed as they looked at him. Obviously these girls were hard up for dates. Another of the less horrible facts was that this WAS Arisugawa's classroom. Being the person that she was she would probably receive much of the attention that might have gone his way. The bad side of this was of course that since the only open seats in the room were those surrounding her, he might gain some additional attention simply from being in her vicinity.  
  
Soneil looked at the seats for a brief moment trying to figure out which one would be least likely to draw attention to him. The one immediately next to her was out as it put him between her and the rest of the class. Not good. Finally he settled on immediately behind her, because one of the girls who'd been giving him the come hither glances was beside the desk in front of her. Juri was of course staring out the window and had been for sometime. In fact except for a brief glance as he was introduced she'd seemingly ignored everything that had happened in the room.  
  
The class itself progressed about as he'd thought it would, with the teachers occasionally picking him to see if they were correct in his ability to adapt to his new situation. He, of course, provided them with his usual standard performance with perhaps an incorrect answer just slightly more frequent than usual as if to say he'd be fine if they'd give him a chance to get adjusted without bothering him. Needless to say none of them caught the hint, not that he'd expected them to.  
  
He ran into yet another complication when it drew time for him to go to Physical Education. The school had apparently decided to hire a new teacher without asking his permission. He'd come to a good compromise with the previous teacher, which was to say the coach had overlooked it when students finished assignments early and wandered off when they were finished. This new teacher seemed to have the silly idea that people needed to sit around and watch the other people do things for the entire period. It made him reassess his idea of joining a club. Club activities were one way to get out of gym class. It was definitely something to think about.  
  
***  
  
He was about to leave for the day when he ran into one of the few faculty members that he had talked to outside of the classroom. Hasekana- sensei was the head librarian for the High School and a person that he had carefully cultivated because of the research potential located within the enormous library. It was never possible to tell when the smallest piece of trivia could prove essential. Preparation was something that his uncle had drummed into his head enough that it was second nature.  
  
"Thane-kun, I'm so glad I caught you." Hasekana-sensei was almost out of breath, not very unusual since she had always seemed rather weak of constitution. It was surprising though that she had been looking for him in particular.  
  
"Yes, Hasekana-sensei?"  
  
Taking several minutes to catch her breath she then continued. "I just recently heard that Kuoma-sensei left us recently," she was of course referring to the late gym teacher, "knowing how much you disliked gym class, I arranged for you to be my assistant during that period."  
  
Suddenly everything made more sense. He'd been telling her for some time now that he didn't like to exert himself overmuch physically instead preferring to take calming walks throughout the campus. Soneil had done this more to create in her a feeling of sympathy, as well as giving the two of them something in common. Hasekana-sensei had had weak lungs as a child something aggravated by strenuous activity. It appeared that the slight exaggeration was going to prove quite beneficial.  
  
Seeing as Soneil had paused overlong she continued. "I understand that you'd like to continue as you have been, but this will actually prove better than before. You'll only need to check in with me at the beginning of the period so that I know you aren't absent for the day. Perhaps if other faculty members are expected by you could do some filing for me in the office. Every other day you'd be free to explore the campus as you saw fit."  
  
It really was extremely generous of her and for a moment he was slightly choked up. She'd cared enough about him that she'd gone out of her way to arrange for him to be more comfortable. He knew just how much she hated to come out of her cozy library, and yet she'd done so to help him. It wasn't her fault that he'd lied to her. He wanted to admit to everything to her, but instead he settled for a simple, "Thank you, Sensei." As it was appropriate for the situation he bowed fairly lowly. And for the first time in a long while he really meant it as the form of respect that it was supposed to be.  
  
***  
  
Arriving back at his dorm room Soneil goes through his usual routine to make sure everything was as he left it. Of course it was. Everything was in exactly its proper place indicating that no one had entered his room. Which of course meant that his secrets were completely safe for another day. Immediately crossing over to his desk he removed the false panel that housed the small turquoise rod he'd bought almost five years before. He'd spent the first profits that his uncle had let him keep on it. It was the only item in the entire room that he cared about at all, despite there being several million yen's worth of jewels hidden under the floorboards. Finally making up his mind on something he'd been contemplating for the longest time he decided to keep it with him whenever he wasn't on a job. Especially since he wouldn't have to entrust it to a gym locker.  
  
As he absently twirled the thirteen cm rod around his fingers as he thought about what he was going to do next. Because of the abrupt change in classrooms he was just a little bit too fresh in people's memories to proceed with his usual evening activities. It'd probably be best to just wander around the campus. In his line of work it never hurt to know one's surroundings better than one currently did already.  
  
Decided on a course of action Soneil walked over to his dresser and pulled out a nice button up shirt in a dark gray as well as some black slacks just slightly less durable than denim. So attired he also grabbed a light jacket of a slightly lighter shade of gray than his shirt. With this combination of clothes he was prepared for situations where he had to interact with people as well as ones where he wished to remain unnoticed. Some people would have expected him to be dressed in all black but, as his uncle had taught him, solid black shadows actually drew more attention to one than lighter shades did. The human eye refused to accept the total absence of color and often drew a person's gaze where a person in darker grays could blend much easier. Soneil had the additional problem of hiding his hair, but then that was what the jacket was for. The rod of course was left on the desk because there was no telling what could happen while exploring.  
  
Calmly strolling out of the dorm building he made his way through the town to the school. Moving a fairly brisk pace it wasn't very long at all until he reached it. Thinking of where to start lead him to the track. Once there Soneil was just looking around when the final rays of the sun reflected off of something. Looking up he saw a large balcony overlooking his current location. It seemed like the perfect place to start to explore.  
  
It was a difficult climb up the wall, but less so than some he had experienced in his time. He'd stuck to the shaded side of the wall to avoid any casual observation. Getting ready to poke his head over the small railing he paused for the briefest of instants because of instinct alone. Which was just as well because it was then that three people passed through some sort of opening in the building and onto the balcony.  
  
The beating of his heart drowned some of their early conversation out, but then cautiously he raised his head over the railing. For once he was lucky that his hair was white for it would be much more difficult to distinguish it from the marble faÃ§ade. His eyes widened when he realized where he was. He'd heard rumors of course of the meeting place of the student council but he'd always thought them just that. That such a large space would be set aside solely for their use was staggering.  
  
He of course recognized all three of the people present immediately, for they were among the most famous of the student body. Touga Kiryu, the council president was there in his white uniform. Something about it struck him as odd, but he couldn't figure out just what it was. Miki Kaoru, the council secretary and the only middle school student on the council, sat beside him in white and blue. Soneil also noticed the cord and sleeve decoration were on the opposite sides than his fellows. The last member was the one that he had been holding till last. Juri Arisugawa was there as the faculty liaison dressed in her standard white and orange. For the first time he really just looked at her. She looked good. Beautiful really, with her orange hair done in neat curls that framed her face. Not that he hadn't known that before of course. He had, but for the first time Soneil regretted the decisions he'd made in his life that prevented him from becoming known as the prodigy he was. He could quite easily imagine himself sitting at the empty place at the table by her side in the white and gray uniform that he had hidden away in the closet.  
  
It was only with the greatest of difficulty that he shook off those thoughts. It was strange that he was having them now, because he hadn't even thought about that uniform in over a year and ambition wasn't something he'd ever desired. It was almost as if being so close to such power was affecting him some how. These were three of most powerful students on campus and with Kyouichi Saionji practically ruled the school. That thought brought him up so short that he almost lost his grip on the wall. Where was Saionji? Apparently the others were wondering the same thing for that was what the conversation turned to.  
  
"Touga-sempai, do you know where Saionji-sempai is?" Miki clicked the off the timer of his stopwatch with his right hand as he wrote with his left.  
  
"Yes, Touga. Where is Saionji?" Juri tossed her head as if it didn't really matter where the vice-president was.  
  
Touga smiled in such a way that Soneil shuddered in disgust. He'd heard the rumors about Touga, but they were merely another thing he'd thought untrue. Apparently he had been mistaken about that as well. Touga Kiryu was apparently just as manipulative as some of the rumors suggested. "Well apparently the vice-president is answering a challenge from a previously unknown duelist."  
  
Juri and Miki both came rigidly to attention in their chairs. Juri was the one to speak first. "So it's true. There are others with the rose seal." She lifted her hand to in front of her face and Soneil could see a glint off of something on her finger.  
  
It was rather frustrating for him that he was so busy trying to decipher what he'd already heard that he missed the rest of that conversation. When he returned his attention to the council members they had moved onto other topics. Seeing as he wasn't going to learn anything else and since he already had much to think on, Soneil decided to head back down the wall. He vaguely heard Juri excusing herself from the meeting above him. The descent was much more difficult than the ascent because of the greatly decreased lighting caused handholds to appear where there were none and hid others. Finally he reached the bottom and turned around. Only to end up staring directly into a pair of light green eyes framed by the same orange curls he had admired earlier.  
  
Inwardly Soneil started to swear. The timing of her departure from the meeting could have been coincidence or it could have meant that he'd been spotted. Either way she obviously knew that he'd been climbing the wall, the only question was whether or not she knew he'd been listening to them. "Good evening. Beautiful weather we are having." As opening statements went it wasn't his greatest but it would have to do.  
  
"Yes it is Thane-san isn't it? Might I ask what you were doing spying on the student council?" She arched a single eyebrow and waited for him to answer.  
  
It did at least answer the question about how long she'd known he'd been there. It was strange that she hadn't said anything to the others. He ran a quick hand through his hair pulling it out of his eyes. He just couldn't think of anything that he could say that would convince her that he hadn't been spying on the council, which admittedly he had been doing. Then it came to him. It was embarrassing, demeaning, and quite possibly the most humiliating thing he'd ever thought of, but it just might work on Juri because of what the student body made her out to be.  
  
Quickly he adjusted his posture and forced himself to blush furiously by thinking of the most embarrassing incidents in his entire life. Not really that hard since this had the potential to replace all of them. "Oh Juri-sama, I'm so embarrassed. I just saw you and next thing I knew I was climbing up the wall trying to get a better look at my hero. I'm you biggest fan. I've probably seen all of your matches, but I've never worked up the courage to actually say hello to you before." He had to pause for a moment or he risked becoming ill. "I have no idea what came over me. I'm so, so, so sorry. Please don't tell anyone. I'd be so embarrassed." He bowed as low as he could and held it because it was getting difficult to maintain a straight face. And it was also strangely appropriate to the situation.  
  
Several long moments passed and with each heartbeat Soneil could see all of his carefully prepared anonymity slipping away because of a stupid restless evening excursion. He'd about given up hope when he heard Juri give an exasperated sigh. "Get up. That story is almost too stupid to be anything other than the truth." He slumped in relief but stiffened again when she glared at him. "I agree that it would be highly embarrassing if it got out, however I am suspicious of your reasons. I won't tell anyone about this incident, but you can be assured that I will be watching you, Sonal Thane."  
  
"Oh, thank you Juri-sama! And it's Soneil Thane." He turned to head off, mentally swearing up a storm, when he heard her speak again.  
  
"I'll remember that, Thane-san. I'll remember that."  
  
***  
  
As he'd known she would Juri was watching him like a hawk. He'd completely stopped his evening excursions for the past week acted as completely in character as he possibly could. In fact he'd even spent his free gym period actually helping Hasekana-sensei get caught up in the library office. But everything he did to contain the damage was useless. He'd slipped up a few times in class and hadn't answered a few questions wrong when he should have. He doubted that anyone except Juri had noticed that but others had noticed the fact that Juri was watching him. People occasionally pointed him out and what whispers he overheard were comments on how little people really knew about him. Once he'd even heard someone say he was a hidden member of the student council and was secretly dating Juri. More and more his turquoise rod was finding its way into his hand to be twirled endlessly while he worked. This despite every effort to not do so as it attracted more attention to him.  
  
There wasn't anyway he could go back to being the person he'd been before. Which was more annoying than anything else because it took a great deal to time to create as elaborate a lie as that one. It was only a matter of time before someone discovered the connections between he and his grandfather. He nodded to himself as he leaned against a tree in one of the courtyards. Any more time he spent trying to salvage his current identity was time he could have spent creating a new one. Looking up he caught sight of Juri sitting at one of the tables on the dining hall's balcony. Since he was giving up he did something he'd been wanting to for the entire week. Raising two finger of his right hand to his temple he gave her a quick salute conceding her the victory. Standing quickly Soneil calmly left the campus for his dorm.  
  
He ignored the people who tried to get his attention in the dorm. They never tried to talk to him before and he didn't want to talk to them now. He shut the door of his room behind him and leaned against it. It was hard to name the feeling that he felt, but it finally came to him. It was relief. Trapped for so long behind anonymity he'd forgotten what it was like to be noticed. It was frightening, exciting, and wonderful. Shaking off the feelings running through his head he concentrated on what he'd returned to do. It was time to reinvent Soneil Thane.  
  
***  
  
Several hours of work had turned out pretty well he thought as he surveyed the sheets of paper that he'd used to detail the new Soneil Thane the previous night. Where as the old Soneil was average in everyway, the new one was much closer to his true potential. Still not equal but closer. Academically perfect. Cheerful and sarcastic. Well dressed but tasteful. Overall much closer to the truth than before. This persona would be much easier to maintain, because it was him. Or at least what he wanted to be when he wasn't sneaking in through someone's second floor window.  
  
He'd enjoy himself with this. Besides his grandfather would probably be happy that he was settling into the prominent position that their family deserved. He looked over at the white uniform that was hanging off of the top of the bunked beds. It was much like the one he'd seen Saionji wearing. His however consisted of the standard white jacket with the left sleeve done in a light gray rather than Saionji's green. The cord was also similarly replaced, as were the slacks. Unfortunately it also wore in a way that was slightly different than that of the teal one he was used to and it took several moments for him to be able to settle it properly. Walking over to the mirror he looked at his reflection and wasn't displeased by what he saw. Still he thought something was missing. He didn't quite stand out enough yet. He pulled a large part of his hair to behind his head and clasped it with an onyx barrette. It was better but not quite enough. He finally sighed and walked over to his desk and took out his brown contacts. Looking back into the mirror he nodded. It certainly worked. He could only hope the effect startled Juri enough that she might overlook any other mistakes he might have made in his planning long enough for him to correct them. Settling himself into the appropriate frame of mind he opened his door and set out for the school. Even before he left the dorm Soneil could hear the gasps of the surprised students and inwardly he smiled.  
  
His inward smile turned into the smallest of smirks as he walked the to campus and caused people to stop and stare. It was always good to keep people off balance. Just then one of the elementary students ran up to him and tugged on his sleeve.  
  
"Sempai, you dropped this." The boy handed him a large black ring with the school's crest on it. Oddly enough it seemed to be sized to fit his finger. Remembering something that had been said at the student council meeting about duels and rings he was glad that the ring wasn't his.  
  
"I'm sorry, but that isn't mine. You should probably turn it into the main office so its owner can reclaim it." He turned away when another tugging on his sleeve stopped him.  
  
"It is yours Sempai. I saw it fall out of your pocket."  
  
Soneil went cold. It was impossible. He'd checked all of the pockets of the uniform before he'd put it on. There had been no such ring in them and he didn't own such a ring. Wordlessly he held out his hand for it. "Thank you." As he turned the ring over in his hand he watched the boy run off to be with his friends. He paused when he realized he felt something on the inside of the ring. It must have been engraved. Probably with the owner's name. Chuckling that the puzzle would have such an obvious solution he looked at the characters written in the metal. He almost dropped it altogether when he saw that it had his name on the inside. Not his real name, but rather the name he went by on the rare occasions he was hired to do a job. His father's name. Hands shaking he put the ring into one of the jacket pockets being careful to button it. He'd deal with the ring later. At the moment he needed to concentrate on pulling himself back together as he walked the rest of the way to the classroom.  
  
***  
  
He'd managed to pull himself together enough that there weren't any visible signs of how shaken up he was by the time he entered the building. In fact outwardly it seemed that he was just slightly superior to everyone else. Juri was sitting in her usual place as he walked into the classroom. She looked over briefly as he entered and went back to looking out the window for a few seconds before whipping her head back around and staring with her mouth hanging slightly open. Soneil knew then that he would treasure the expression on her face for the rest of his life.  
  
Threading his way through the desks of his fellow stunned students he calmly sat down in his usual seat, the only indication that he was aware of Juri's stare being the slightly upturned corner of his mouth. He pretended to ignore her for several minutes before seeming to notice her. "Can I help you this morning, Arisugawa-san?"  
  
Her eyebrow arched up. "It seems I misunderstood the salute yesterday afternoon. I had thought you were indicating a loss." She made a small show of looking him up and down. "Perhaps I have misjudged you in other areas as well, Thane-san."  
  
"You compliment me. Yesterday was a loss. But only a point." He looked at her and narrowed his eyes slightly before flicking them towards the other students who seemed to be collectively holding their breath. "The bout continues does it not? Perhaps there should be a review of the rules at a later time?"  
  
"I look forward to it." For a brief moment Soneil thought he saw the smallest of smiles on Juri's face, but if he did it was gone much too quickly to be sure. Still if he had seen it correctly he too would be looking forward to matching wits with Juri Arisugawa.  
  
The rest of the time until lunch passed somewhat normally, with the only difference being that he spent even less time paying attention to class than Juri usually did. The teachers were of course highly annoyed until hey realized that he was failing to answer anything incorrectly as he had occasionally done before. He could almost see Juri's eyebrow raising despite the fact she didn't so much as glance back at him during this time.  
  
Despite having drawn a whole new level of attention to himself Soneil found it rather easy to get out of the room without having to answer any questions from the other students. He only imitated what Juri and acted as if he was too busy to even notice that people wanted to talk to him. The trip to the dining facility was equally uneventful until the point that he sat down at the table he'd often seen Juri sitting in over the past few days. The table was apparently hers by unspoken right and so the hall quieted immediately when she walked in. Again he smirked slightly at the shocked expressions on the students' faces as the most popular girl in the school silently sat herself down across from him and then coolly glanced at the people seated at the closest table. They immediately left.  
  
"I believe the point went to you earlier today, Thane-san." Juri calmly began eating. "So what are the rules of the bout?"  
  
He thought for a moment. "I don't see as how we really need rules as we were doing well enough before hand without. Points are to be conceded by the opponent." He paused and looked directly at her for a moment. "I do hope that this will be interesting, Arisugawa-san."  
  
She nodded. "I think that is one thing that can be counted on. May I ask where you found such a uniform?"  
  
"My closet. I've had it for quite a while really. But as I dislike undo attention I haven't worn it." He shook his head ruefully. "It seems that attention isn't something I can avoid anymore so I figured why not wear it?"  
  
"I had thought that only members of the student council wore such a uniform?" She made her statement into a question that asked several things, and it was clear she wanted them all answered.  
  
"In reality that is close but not exactly true. The school gives the uniforms out to both the school's elite and those children of important patrons. It is just that the council members happen to number among the elite."  
  
She frowned slightly. "And which are you, Thane-san?"  
  
"It'd be fairly arrogant for me to say both wouldn't it? The truth of the matter is that my wished to educate his heir at a fairly prestigious school and so sent me here. No doubt he was highly disappointed when he discovered that I wasn't flaunting myself as he would have done, and I did so enjoy acting contrary to his preferences." He tilted his head to the side. "I would appreciate it if you'd let me know how much longer you plan on watching me because all of this public attention gets quite tiring after a while. Don't you agree?"  
  
For a brief moment he thought he saw her roll her eyes. She then frowned slightly once more. "Weren't your eyes brown earlier?"  
  
"I'm honored that such a beautiful woman took the time to remember the color of my eyes. Yes they were."  
  
"And yet they are blue now. I assume there's a reason for this."  
  
"There is. Contacts." He pushed away from the table and started on his way. When he'd gotten about halfway to the exit Soneil heard her call out to him.  
  
"But which is the truth?"  
  
He laughed out loud. "The truth? I don't deal in truths, Arisugawa- san. I deal in reality. If you want truths you'll have to find them yourself. Good day."  
  
She tipped her fingers to her head. "Point to you then."  
  
*** 


	2. Chapter 2

Dorobo no Kokoro (Thief of Heart) A Shoujo Kakumei Utena Fanfiction By Prospero Hibiki The Grandmaster Mongoose God of Misdirection, Caffeine, and Those Socks You Lost Last Tuesday  
  
hell_frost@hotmail.com  
  
Disclaimer:  
  
Were I anything but a poor college student I would ... well I don't know what would happen since I doubt that this situation will change in the foreseeable future except if I fail out of said college. As it is I'm not making any money off of these characters and any character that you don't recognize from Shoujo Kakumei Utena is mine. And the truly sad thing is I'm not even making money off of them. The characters you do recognize however belong to Saito Chiho, Ikuhara Kunihiko, Be-Papas, Viz, Animerica, Animerica Extra, Shogakukan, and/or any combination of these and others.  
  
This story takes place during the timeline of the regular Utena series but in a slightly adjusted universe. For those not familiar with the idea this is considered an Altiverse fic. With this said there will be changes in the original timeline and series content for reasons better left unexplained (it also smoothes over some gaps in my memory). So please don't flame me saying that these characters are wrong or that I've completely mangled your favorite scene from the series.  
  
***  
  
Several days passed in similar veins with the occasional imaginary point being passed back and forth between them. It attracted attention to him to be sure but as his uncle had taught him, sometimes the best disguise was one so outrageous that no one could dispute it. To be safe he even allowed a couple of extra days to pass by despite thinking it safe to resume at least some of his usual evening activities. Not the more unusual ones but rather the more sedate activity of exploring his surroundings.  
  
He still hadn't been able to discover why his grandfather had refused to tell him anymore about the town than that he'd be attending school there and that he should act more appropriately for some one of his status. That alone was most unusual since the old man seemed to have an opinion about everything. This place didn't seem to be an exception except in the fact that he refused to give that opinion.  
  
Just thinking about it was making his head hurt, and dressing in some casual clothing he opened the window so he could go to visit a park that he'd seen the other day. Normally he'd have just left through the door but with his new popularity his dorm mates had become entirely too aware of his comings and goings. Which of course was why he'd selected a room that was located conveniently close to a trellis. One that had been just as conveniently strengthened during his time at the school. His button up green shirt and black pants blended tolerably with the plants and shadows of the plants on the trellis and wouldn't look that conspicuous to anyone who happened to notice him once he started walking around, as a grey bodysuit most certainly would.  
  
The park wasn't that far away even on foot and soon he had the entrance in sight. A ways in the park split and he decided to take turn to the right going around the corner shielded by a surprisingly large boxtree. Only a quick dodge to the left kept Soneil from being bawled over by a younger girl with pink hair. He spun around to watch her storm off wondering as he did so what about what had gotten her so visibly upset. Turning back around as he continued to walk his eyes widened for the few seconds it took him to trip over Juri and send both of them into the pond.  
  
Poised above her with his arms to either side, he was again reminded of how striking she was. She for the most part seemed slightly stunned, as if ending up in the pond was so completely unexpected that she didn't know how to deal with it. Which probably would have been a fair assessment for Soneil was in much the same condition. Or at least was stunned in ending up in such a highly suggestible position with Juri. The thoughts he'd had while watching her on the balcony came to mind. She was quite possibly the only person he'd been attracted to in quite a while and the experience was frightening.  
  
"Thane-san, would you please get off of me now?" she said, clearly slightly annoyed at him.  
  
He flushed. "I'm terribly sorry, Arisugawa-san. I was just so surprised that I guess I froze." What's more he hated that he was telling the truth. He wasn't supposed to freeze like that no matter the situation. His uncle would have been appalled.  
  
It took them several awkward moments to separate themselves for it appeared that her gown had become wrapped around his legs because of the speed of their tumble. By the time they were standing beside the pond Soneil's face had changed from the slight pink of embarrassment to the deep red of mortification.  
  
So busy was he berating himself for his lack of attention for his surroundings that he didn't at first hear what she said. "Pardon?"  
  
She frowned slightly, something he was starting to associate with her being slightly irritated. "I said that we seem to meet in the strangest places. If you hadn't literally run into me I would almost think you were stalking me."  
  
"I definitely wasn't doing that, Arisugawa-san." He shrugged. "It's just that you always seem to be out and about whenever the urge to wander strikes me." Several moments of silence passed between them before he smirked slightly. "If I believed in destiny or fate I'd probably bring those up, but I don't." Soneil shook his head trying to clear it thoughts of philosophy. "I'm sorry, I'm just running off on tangents tonight. It seems that I still can't outrun my thoughts. Goodnight Arisugawa-san."  
  
As he turned to leave her alone he stopped when he felt her hand on his arm. "Do you believe in miracles?"  
  
Though it was strange that someone as apparently self-assured as Juri would ask him a question like that; the expression on her face shocked him even more. He silenced the quip that had been about to leave his tongue to examine her closely. Fear, sorrow, regret, anger, hope. So many emotions seemed to flit across her face, and he could sense that the answer was important to her. He sat down in the spot she had been sitting in before he'd encountered her, more out of a need to stall and think than out of any real desire to rest.  
  
"My uncle wasn't a rich man, being as how he'd been disowned from the family before I was born. He wasn't a rich man, but he raised me the best that he could because my father, his brother, had asked him too." He paused and looked up at Juri, seeing if she was even listening and continued when he saw that she was. "He taught me many things, things that my grandfather hates. But one evening we saw two children sitting in the doorway of an abandoned building. One of them was very sick and was being cradled by the elder. I'd become so used to it by then that I didn't even stop, but my uncle did. He stopped and paused for a few seconds. Then we left. When we got home he went into his room and made a phone call and I didn't think anything more of the incident." He paused as if to think some more.  
  
"What does this have to do with miracles, Thane-san?"  
  
"Two months later an associate of my uncle's stopped by. I'd never liked the man before, but that changed that day. With him were the children looking much better than before. He'd taken them in and they were...saved, I guess." He looked her in the eyes. "You asked me if I believe in miracles? Answer this, Juri. What saved those children? Their sitting there, my uncle stopping, his friend's caring, or was it some combination of these things? Would they have survived if any of them were missing or removed? Do I believe in miracles? Things are what we make of them." Soneil rose up again and walked to a point that was just behind her back and continued in a whisper. "I control my fate. I make my own destiny. But, God help me, I dread the thought of a world without miracles. For if I doubt miracles than my father died for nothing."  
  
He left, moving at a pace slightly faster than his normal walking pace. It'd been a long time since he'd thought about his father's death. The man who'd gone for a walk one evening and run into a burning building to save some children he'd never met. He'd never talked about it with his uncle before the man's death, but Soneil had long suspected that the incident with the children was because of his uncle's feelings for his father.  
  
It was going to be a long night for him and not one that would remain as a fond memory in all likelihood, but it had been important for that story to be told then. Juri had needed to hear it. Still that wouldn't make the pain of telling it go away. Ever so slowly, and despite the quickness of his movements the tears started to slide down his cheeks.  
  
He didn't go back to the dorm room instead choosing to wander around the town for several hours before he decided to just curl up in a tree in a small park close to the campus. He'd always liked sleeping in trees, it always reminded him of trips taken with his father to the forest. Not for the first time he wondered if his father would have been proud of him, what he'd become. Would he even acknowledge the thief that his son had become? Would he ruffle hair like he'd always done before, or would he turn away in disgust?  
  
Like so many questions asked that day his were also to remain unanswered for a while longer.  
  
***  
  
Soneil managed to sneak into the dorm just before he'd usually get up and was prepared for the day by his usual time. Popping open one of the secret panels located in the desk he took out a length of silver chain and looped the black ring onto it after removing it from its place of concealment. It was tucked under his uniform jacket after spending several minutes of examination of the inscription of his father's name.  
  
In something similar to a haze Soneil went though the motions of the day without taking any real notice of what went on around him. Teacher's questions were answered out of shear reflex, and witty rejoinders were tossed out wherever appropriate. All with Soneil being practically dead inside. Various times found him reaching up to his chest as if confirming that the ring was still resting above his heart.  
  
The sun was already setting when he finally came to his senses. Warm against his chest the ring seemed to be pulsing with energy against his skin as if pulling him towards something. He shrugged and went wherever it seemed to lead until he was standing in the middle of the track once more. He looked up at the student council balcony and wondered if Juri was there. Strange thinking back over the day she hadn't seemed to approach him at all. Shrugging he calmly set the issue aside for a later time, even if it was bothering him slightly.  
  
Church bells rang out loudly from behind him and Soneil whirled around in place. The forest. Those bells had come from the forest that was off limits to everyone not on the student council. Striding quickly towards the forest and looking towards the tops of the trees he almost missed seeing the person staggering out of the gateway.  
  
He rushed forward when the person started to walk next to the stone wall eventually coming to a halt leaning against it. He arrived just as the person slid down and put her head against her knees. It was Juri just as he'd somehow known it would be. He said nothing only sat down next to her with his back also to the white wall. Reaching over, he gently removed her sword from where she was curled around it and leaned it against the wall as well. She wasn't crying, but it seemed she should be. The lack of tears disturbed him in a way that he just couldn't understand.  
  
Minutes passed and he could see someone leaving the forest through the gate but no details about the person. He wanted to storm over and destroy the person for hurting Juri, but he didn't for he didn't want to leave Juri alone. It scared him that she'd brought a sword to this place. He could tell it was a real sword for he'd seen and held more than his fair share of them one way or another. So he remained where he was doing nothing but sitting with his back to the wall.  
  
"Why are you here, Thane-san?"  
  
He didn't need to look at her again to know that she'd turned to look at him. Instead he continued to look out over the campus. It was fairly pretty this late in the evening, he decided. He let the silence between them stretch for a few minutes longer before speaking. "I don't know why I came here, really. An urge a feeling. Does it really matter why I came? No, it doesn't. You want to know why I stayed. For that I could give a hundred glib responses, but none would be true." Soneil shrugged. "Maybe I stayed because before I didn't even stop. But I don't think that's true."  
  
"Do you always speak in riddles?" He heard the exasperated tone in her voice and smiled out of the side of his mouth that was away from her.  
  
"Of course not, Juri. Only to you. I don't think anyone else could appreciate them."  
  
"You're acting awfully familiar with someone you hardly know, Thane- san."  
  
Soneil looked at her for the first time since she'd started speaking. "Are you telling me to stop, Juri?" It was a critical time for him. He'd extended to her his hand in genuine friendship, which was something that he never did even if she had no way of knowing that. It would have been all too easy to walk away from her before, but whatever answer she gave would change that.  
  
Her reply was so soft that he wouldn't have caught it if he hadn't been desperate to hear it in the first place. "No." As it was he still could barely hear it.  
  
He nodded, making no further acknowledgement of her response knowing that she would notice. "I have questions for you." He didn't think it necessary to say what they'd be about. "I don't expect answers, but I'd appreciate them if they're provided." He stood up and pushed away from the wall. Facing her he picked up her sword and offered her a hand. "But not today. It's getting late and there is time to talk another day." Once she was standing he handed her back her sword. Giving her what could only be called a cheery wave he turned and started off towards his dorm.  
  
"The past never lets us go does it, Soneil?" As he slowed to a stop she continued. "Always people remind us of what we've lost."  
  
He turned back to her once more and saw that she had reached her hand up to her chest much like he had done throughout the day. It seemed that he wasn't the only one to have a secret hanging around his neck. He chuckled. "You're too young to be that cynical, Juri."  
  
From his distance he could just make out her raised eyebrow. "I'm no younger than you are."  
  
This time he couldn't help but laugh aloud. "We might be the same age Juri, but you're hundreds of years younger than me." He could feel his outward demeanor solidifying into something harder than before. "Be glad of that fact, Juri. I know I am." He walked away before she could formulate a proper response.  
  
***  
  
Sitting in class the next morning Soneil wondered where Juri was. Class had been in session for twenty minutes before she calmly walked through the doorway and sat down at her desk as if nothing were the matter. The teacher looked as if he wished to comment on her tardiness, but a cool look from her put an end to that before it began. Soneil raised an eyebrow at the shaken expression on the teacher's face.  
  
The time until lunch passed quickly and instead of hurrying out like the rest of the students, Soneil calmly waited at his desk until only Juri remained in the classroom. She turned in her desk to look at him and he returned her gaze.  
  
"Do you want you're answers now?"  
  
"No," he said shaking his head. "Just wondering if you wanted to get something to eat. It is what people normally do during this part of the day."  
  
"I'm not feeling very hungry today." With that she stood and walked out the door.  
  
Soneil shook his head once more. He was certain that he'd never understand Juri Arisugawa anytime soon if he ever understood her at all.  
  
The line in the lunchroom was fairly long and when he reached the end he found nothing that particularly interested him. Giving up entirely on lunch he walked outside with the hopes of finding a nice tree to curl up in. He'd been getting entirely too little time to himself in the past week and wanted to just get away from everyone. Which made Touga Kiryuu's approach that much more irritating.  
  
"You must be Soneil Thane. You've caused quite a stir in the student council recently. So many questions about you." He gave Soneil what he could only call a smugly superior look. "I've even heard rumors that you're romantically involved with one of our members. Quite an accomplishment for someone who before this term was relatively unknown."  
  
Soneil tried to give him the look that he thought Juri would use in the same situation. He thought he must have gotten it wrong when Touga's smile grew in size. "I've learned not to listen to rumors. They cause all sorts of confusion while providing no useful information. I mean really, how could I possibly be interested in you that way. Some people will believe anything." He pushed past the student council president without sparing him another glance.  
  
"I guess that'll leave me to take care of Arisugawa then. Don't worry about her then. I'll take great care about giving her my undivided attention. I might even enjoy it."  
  
He whirled to face Touga. "If you so much as touch her I will kill you." It came out much quieter than he had intended, but that was probably just as well since there were some students sitting not fifteen feet away. Touga also clearly got the message for although he didn't back up his eyes widened for the briefest moment. He continued. "Juri is my friend and as strange as that may seem to you, an attack against her is an attack against me and will be dealt with accordingly."  
  
It took a while but Touga's face eventually cleared of his surprise and another smile seemed to come to his face though it probably would have been better termed a smirk. "So the rumors are true, after all." He shook his head. "And I so thought Arisugawa had better taste."  
  
Trying as hard as he could, Soneil repressed the urge to flick his wrist in a motion that would drop an extremely thin throwing knife into his right hand. The image of it suddenly sprouting itself in Touga's left eye was an interesting diversion but would call way too much attention if acted upon. Instead he stepped so that he was just past the red-haired man much like he had with Juri before he left her by the pond two days before. "Did you know that some of the most deadly snakes in the world are rather foolish at times? So very often they are so convinced of their own superiority that they do everything too boldly. And so every so often these snakes make a mistake and enter the den of a creature they think they can kill. Sometimes they even succeed. It tends to be the last thing they do though. For their prey dies only after the life has already faded from their cold eyes."  
  
"Is that a threat, Soneil Thane?"  
  
"Of course not Mr. Student Council President. Merely an interesting bit of natural fact." Soneil continued on his way back inside before stopping and turning once more to face Touga. "Only foolish cobras disturb the mongoose, Touga. Good luck on your report."  
  
Soneil strode off once more neither looking back nor slowing until he found himself in an empty classroom. There he allowed himself to slump against the wall. He also found the time to allow the knife he had been thinking of using earlier to find its way into a nearby bulletin board exactly where he wanted it. As soon as it left his hand he realized his stupidity and retrieved it. Still he did feel significantly better once he'd done so. Turning to leave he jumped when he discovered Miki standing in front of him with his head tilted to the side as if in thought. Seeing his only option was to pretend he hadn't been doing anything important, Soneil just nodded to him as he left the room.  
  
When he got to his own empty classroom he sat in his seat and mentally cursed himself for acting as he had in view of two more members of the student council. At the rate he was going everyone in the campus would know everything about him before the year was over. Thinking about that he couldn't help but chuckle as he lay his head down on top of his arms.  
  
"I thought you were getting something to eat?"  
  
Looking up he shrugged when he saw Juri sitting once more at the desk in front of him. "Wasn't as hungry as I thought." He sighed once more. "You know, Juri, that ever since that little run in we had at the start of the semester my life has started to spiral out of control. I was so used to being unnoticed by everyone and in complete control of my every action. Neither are true anymore."  
  
"I'm sorry."  
  
He looked up puzzled because she did sound sincerely apologetic about changing the way his life had worked. "Why? You were only acting on your own impulses. That's nothing to be sorry for. I'm the one who's been living a lie the entire time I've been here."  
  
She tilted her head as if confused. "But this isn't what you wanted. I pulled you into the spotlight. That's the reason why you no longer have control."  
  
"Of course it's not what I wanted. But then if I'd always done what I'd wanted to do I'd never have experienced anything new. No, Juri, I'm not unhappy with how my life is proceeding now. Sure I don't like some parts of it, but others.others aren't too bad." He continued to look at her and shook his head when she turned away abruptly. "It's strange I'm alive for once when I'm not working. For heaven's sake I actually wanted to kill someone earlier I was so angry. I've never allowed myself any emotions for the longest time and getting used to them once more is frightening to say the least. So don't say you're sorry, Juri. I'm not."  
  
"You're a most peculiar person, Soneil Thane. Most peculiar."  
  
He smirked at her. "But of course. And I did prefer it when you called me just Soneil. Despite what fire that might add to whatever rumors are currently floating around."  
  
"Rumors?" The way she'd said the word was both chilling and curious, and Soneil finally saw the ice that formed a large part of the façade that she showed to world.  
  
"I don't know what they are specifically since I don't listen to them much. Though I used to. It seems people are much more closed mouthed when I'm around than they used to be. If you really wished to know, Touga recently told me that he keeps up with them much better than I ever did."  
  
"You spoke with the council president?"  
  
Soneil couldn't help but smile at the memory of the expression on Touga's face. "Oh yes. We had a most satisfactory discussion on wildlife. I do believe he even learned something." Students started to flow into the room at that point ending pretty much any possibility of continuing their conversation in peace.  
  
*** 


End file.
